Mustafa Qadri

Now that an amnesty providing immunity to thousands has expired, Pakistan’s supreme court has the chance to showcase its merits

· Mustafa Qadri
· guardian.co.uk, Saturday 5 December 2009 18.00 GMT

It may be more a matter of wits than weapons, but the battle for control of Pakistan’s executive branch of government is as significant for the country as the war against the Taliban. Resolving this latest crisis, the fiercest tussle over the stewardship of the country since Pervez Musharraf was ousted from the presidency in August 2008, will determine the future of Pakistan’s parliamentary democracy for many years to come.

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Last month’s attack on a Pakistani Christian community by a mob of Sunni Muslims is a worrying development in a country that purports to fight extremism, writes Mustafa Qadri

“Make mincemeat of the Christians” blared the mosque loudspeakers.

This was not the Taliban speaking, nor was it in the frontier of Pakistan along the Afghan border. The setting was the Christian Colony of Gojra in rural Punjab, Pakistan’s most populous and powerful province.

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Communal stability is at risk as the rollout of Zia ul-Haq’s Islamisation continues unabated

Mustafa Qadri
guardian.co.uk, Monday 24 August 2009 10:00 BST

In decades past, the town mullahs decried the use of megaphones during the call to prayer. Now they have embraced the technology in Pakistan. In every city the loud blare of the muezzin echoes throughout the streets, although they rarely call out in unison. For centuries Muslims have bickered over prayer times, and much else.

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Mr Sharif, a possible future prime minister, was sharply critical of US policy in Pakistan saying former US president George W. Bush had helped promote terrorism by backing military ruler General Pervez Musharraf. He said Mr Bush was against Pakistan’s return to democracy and deaf to advice. Interesting to see how his views are now [...]

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Now, as the Obama administration completes its review of strategy toward the region this week, his sudden ascent has raised an urgent question: Can Mr. Sharif, 59, a populist politician close to Islamic parties, be a reliable partner? Or will he use his popular support to blunt the military’s already fitful campaign against the insurgency [...]

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My latest piece on the situation in Pakistan for The Guardian was published today:

Rough Justice in Swat

The growing influence of the Taliban in the North-West Frontier Province is a direct threat to Pakistan’s fragile democracy…

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Registrar Office of Supreme Court of Pakistan has raised the objections on all the four review petitions filed by Federation early on Thursday against court’s verdict in Sharif brothers’ eligibility case. According to the SC registrar, the petitions miss necessary documents, including surety bonds, court fees, paper books and copy of the court’s earlier verdict [...]

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Secretary of State Hillary Clinton told Pakistani leaders that some US lawmakers “may not feel inclined” to support aid to Islamabad if political chaos continues, a top US official said on Monday. But the official, speaking to reporters on condition of anonymity, said Clinton presented the issue as a reality rather than a threat in [...]

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My analysis of the reinstatment of Iftikhar Mohammad Chaudhry as Pakistan’s Chief Justice was published in Crikey.com.au today:

Democracy revitalised by Pakistan’s Chief Justice

By demonstrating the importance of functioning and accountable institutions, Pakistan’s lawyers may well have paved the road upon which the long road from its present hell may be charted, writes Mustafa Qadri.

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Here is my report for NewMatilda.com from the lawn of the Chief Justice’s residence in Islamabad the day of his reinstatement.

Long March ends in triumph

Instead of violent confrontation there was jubilation in Islamabad yesterday as the Government bowed to protestors’ demands and reinstated the sacked Chief Justice. Mustafa Qadri reports

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My report for The Guardian from Islamabad the day of the Chief Justice’s reinstatement has just been published here:

Democracy has been revitalised by Pakistan’s Chief Justice

President Zardari’s decision to reinstate Chief Justice Chaudhry has stabilised the country – and saved his political career

Mustafa Qadri

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Here’s a list of breaking developments on the lawyers’ Long March to Islamabd (to restore the deposed Chief Justice Iftikhar Mohammad Chaudhry): Allegations of torture of lawyers arrested by Police, from Imran Schah in Islamabad. With the US and UK’s blessing, have Prime Minister Gilani and Army Chief Kayani given President Zardari an ultimatum to [...]

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My report for NewMatilda.com from the start of the lawyers’ Long March in Karachi for NewMatilda.com was published today:

The Long March Begins

Protestors in Pakistan’s lawyers’ movement set out yesterday on their long march to the capital. Mustafa Qadri reports from Karachi on what has become a street-level vote of no-confidence in the Government

From across the country they took to the streets, re-enacting scenes from the darkest days of the Musharraf regime over a year earlier.

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Mustafa Qadri: History Repeats Itself In Pakistan

Guardian: Comment Is Free

By invoking a Raj-era law against public protest, the government demonstrates its inability to handle the country’s real problems…

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The crackdown began late Tuesday night, with the government invoking Section 144 of the 1860 Penal Code, a law from the British colonial era that forbids public gatherings of four or more people.

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Pakistan has arrested hundreds of opposition political activists in an overnight sweep ahead of a planned protest rally, as a looming political showdown presents the most serious challenge yet to the year-old government.

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Mustafa Qadri: Long March To Nowhere

As bickering politicians bring paralysis to Pakistan, will Washington give the army its backing?

It seems with each new week a fresh crisis is thrust upon the people of Pakistan. This year, in a little over two months, the nation has faced more traumas than most countries face in a generation. Last month authorities in the north-western Swat valley reached a peace deal with a religious group closely aligned to the Taliban. This week another peace deal was signed directly with the Taliban in the neighbouring Bajaur tribal agency after a series of successful if devastating operations by the Pakistani army.

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Will Pakistan’s Army Chief step into the political fray the country’s civilian leadership is currently embroiled in? That’s the question I ask in my latest piece for newmatilda.com:

A New Dictator For Pakistan?

Speculation is mounting in Islamabad that a military coup is on the cards, writes Mustafa Qadri. And Pakistan’s most powerful ally doesn’t seem to mind…

Pakistan is facing its greatest political crisis since the resignation of Pervez Musharraf as president last year.

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The failures of this government and its inability to defend the country’s interests or its population from drones or terrorist attacks are paving the way for the return of the army to power as a way of avoiding a serious split within its own ranks. All that is awaited is a green light from the [...]

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Pakistan’s supreme court on Wednesday nullified the election last year of a key opposition leader, sparking a wave of anti-government protests in the populous Punjab province and prompting worries over a new round of political instability.

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Nawaz announced that his party would extend full support to the long march of the lawyers’ community on March 9 for restoration of judges, expressing the hope that masses would give enthusiastic response to the event like they had done to the last long march. He, however, said they had not talked to the lawyers’ [...]

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The following article, on tensions between India and Pakistan following the November attacks on Mumbai, was published in the Guardian Comment is Free website today:

Are India and Pakistan heading for war?

Pressure is mounting on politicians in both countries to take drastic action in the wake of recent terrorist attacks

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The following piece, on simmering dispute over Indian-controlled Kashmir, was printed in NewMatilda.com today:

All Road Lead to Kashmir

The Indian Government has done well to paint itself as an innocent victim after the Mumbai attacks. But Lashkar-e-Toiba has its roots in the conflict over Kashmir, writes Mustafa Qadri

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“The Taliban’s War Against Muslims” NewMatilda.com 1 September 2008
(The Taliban claims to be a Muslim movement but most of its victims are Muslims, writes Mustafa Qadri from Islamabad)

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“Musharraf’s end: new beginning?” Foreign Policy in Focus, 22 August 2008
(On Pervez Musharraf’s resignation as President of Pakistan)

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“End of the Musharraf era in Pakistan” Guardian – Comment is Free, 19 August 2008
(On Pervez Musharraf’s resignation as President of Pakistan)

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“A bloodless end” NewMatilda.com 19 August 2008
(On Pervez Musharraf’s resignation as President of Pakistan)

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“Will Musharraf finally fall?” NewMatilda.com 11 August 2008
(On the increasing speculation on Pervez Musharraf’s future as Pakistan President)

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“A tale of two impeachments” Guardian – Comment is Free 8 August 2008
(A comparison of the impeachment proceedings against Pakistan’s President Musharraf and US President George Bush)

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President Pervez Musharraf will have to face impeachment under Article 47 of the Constitution if he fails to take vote of confidence from the assemblies immediately. This was announced by Co-chairman PPP, Asif Ali Zardari at a joint press conference with PML(N) Chief, Nawaz Sharif, here at Zardari House on Thursday. The announcement came after [...]

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